Stories Don't Belong on Earth

“Can you believe what’s happened to her? It’s like she’s disappeared from her entire life.” The voice wafted down the hallway to reach Kass’s ears. Kass ignored it, however. This was a conversation she had heard plenty of times, and it always turned out the same. Next her father would defend her, saying that she would come around, she’d be fine. Then Alice, Kass’s stepmother, would say angrily that she should be sent to a psychiatrist, to figure this out. Sure enough, the next words Kass heard were:
“Honey, it isn’t her fault. She’ll come around. After all, what happened could have happened to anyone.” Kass sighed and mouthed the next words along with Alice’s voice.
“But Tobe, she needs help. She isn’t even trying to dig herself out. She needs someone professional. A psychiatrist, perhaps.” This time, though, Kass couldn’t bear to hear her father’s lame excuses.
“You know I can hear you up here.” She called down, her hoarse voice rasping along her throat. “I’m not a thing. I do have feelings.”
There was no reply right away to that, just a clatter up the stairs, and footsteps to her room. “Kass, dear. If you keep moping like there’s nothing left to live for, we’re going to need to do something.” Alice’s false concern oozed through the air to land on Kass’s ears, like jellied meat landing on a plate. Her stepmother never really cared about Kass, she only pretended to care for the sake of the REAL father of Kass. He cared about the both of them so much, but he often sided with Alice. Alice loved Kass’s father more than anything, but that care was the only thing that kept her from hating Kass.
Kass sat up on her down comforter, and shot at Alice, “Why do you even care, Alice? Huh? Yes, you love me. But what about the times that Dad left to go to work, and I was sick? You said you’d look after me, but where did you go? Oh yeah, you went to the movies with your sister.”
Alice forced out a smile that looked more like a grimace. “You were sick with the flu, dearest. You weren’t sane at all that day. Of course I was there looking after you!” She turned, and asked Dad, “Do you mind if I have a moment alone with her, honey?” Kass shook her head frantically, but her dad smiled and walked out of the door, closing it softly behind the two of them. The smile slid off of Alice’s face like water sliding across a window. “You may not remember anything, but I do, missy.” She snarled, spitting out the last word. “Lucky for me you’ve lost all will to live. If you tried harder, you might remember. Too bad you don’t care.” She spat on the floor, and walked out with a big sweet smile on her face for Tobe, leaving Kass in confusion. What was that about? Kass thought dazedly.
It was mostly true, what Alice said. Kass remembered nothing except for one thing. David. David was the love of Kass’s life, long before the crash. Dad had told her that David died in a car crash where Kass was driving. She didn’t remember that, but she did remember what felt like screen shots in a life that had left her behind. Memories of her laughing with him, screaming and hugging each other in a movie, the electric shock that ran through her on their first kiss, but that was all. She didn’t remember any other thing in her life, which made her even more depressed. The pain had ripped a whole in her heart, that, even after three weeks of endurance, still refused to ebb away.
Kass got up, and looked at a picture that was supposedly taken at the Prom last year. The bright-eyed girl who had her soft, brown hair in a curly up-do and her arms around David was replaced by a girl who had purple bruise-like shadows under her eyes, and had acne spread across her nose like freckles. Much had changed that night, the least of which were her looks. That was the night of the crash, the night where she had her soul ripped up, and sent to various places around the world.
But, that couldn’t happen. Kass saw how badly she was hurting her father, and she wouldn’t, couldn’t let that happen any longer.
The first thing Kass did was take a shower. The water ran hot, washing away the grime built up over the course of many days. After stepping out of the smoggy bathroom, she went to her room and picked out a pair of dark washed jeans and a printed top that had Pink Floyd: Dark Side of the Moon written on it. She straightened her hair, braided it down her back, and put makeup on. Looking in the mirror again, Kass could finally see a semblance to the girl in the photograph. She smiled in triumph.
Bounding down the stairs, Kass grabbed a slice of bread and stuffed it in the toaster, while at the same time, pouring herself some chocolate milk. It felt good to be doing something; it felt right. She turned on the radio, it was on a country station. “No” Kass said defiantly, and she changed it to random stations, until she found one she liked. The sounds of Queen flowed out of the speakers, as Kass buttered the toast that had just popped out. Taking a bite, she heard steps down the stairs, not with the clicking of heels, however. They were soft footsteps that sounded as if the person was barefoot.
Kass looked up the stairs, and it was Dad. He beckoned to her, and she went straight up. “What’s up, Dad?” She asked him.
Dad smiled, and told her, “Thank you for moving on.” He kissed her forehead, and went to the bathroom. Soon, Kass heard the pitter patter of water from a shower hitting the bathroom floor. Kass smiled. She was healing; she would move on.
Kass checked the time, and found out with a start that it was twelve o’clock. She went back downstairs and checked the calendar. She had been oblivious of the date for too long. The calendar read that it was December 29, 2008. Wow, I missed Christmas! She thought incredulously. Her heart sank when she realized it, however. How hard would it be for her father that Kass refused to get out of bed on Christmas!? Kass felt terrible, but there was nothing she could do about it now.
“What could I do right now?” Kass murmured to herself. She was bored, but didn’t want to mope. She had done that far too much lately. Making a snap decision, she decided to go up to her room and search for a journal. The Kass after the crash would have kept one, but would the Kass before? The first place she looked was under the mattress. Nothing there. Next, she checked in her clothes drawers. No luck. Kass sighed, and turned back to leave her room, when, on a whim, she turned on her computer to check it out for journal entries. She brought up the search option, and typed in two words: Kass Journal. The computer searched through the many files; Kass didn’t realize that there were so many files on here. It took an hour of searching and two cappuccinos for her to be patient enough to wait, but it the end, there was one entry in the found slot: Kass.
Kass clicked on it excitedly, hoping to learn something about her life, but the only thing that came up was a link to an email. Dejectedly, she clicked on the link, fighting a wave of depression washing over her simultaneously. Up came the email, and it was to her dad. That didn’t surprise her; this was her dad’s old computer. What did surprise her was the sender. The name read Mellina Browne, but her Dad never mentioned a Mellina, or a Browne. The message said that this Mellina didn’t agree with her father, and that, if he wants a daughter, he should go about it the old-fashioned way. The reply was ‘I don’t care about what you think, I’m paying you to write.’ “Not paying her to write what?” Kass mumbled, engrossed in the letter.
‘It mayn’t work out, I’ve never tried it with someone live.’
‘Give it a go. You can always try again.’
The reply to that held a attachment, along with the words, ‘hope it works out, Mellina.’ Kass clicked on the attachment, expecting government files, or something to that accord. The Microsoft word program popped up, and along with it came a story.
She always loved him, with a fiery passion that reduced all other things to embers. They were open and direct with each other, filling each other like they were two piece of the same puzzle. He was smart and funny, she was determined and serious. Two pieces of the whole. She once had another name, but she changed it when they met, from Rachel, to Kass.
“Kass!” Kass cried. What was this? Is this someone her dad hired to make her life a book? This...Mellina...the name felt strangely heavy on her tongue. Is she someone her dad met before? Could this be...her...mother? Kass read eagerly on.
Kass was in love with him, David, so much that if they were apart, even for a second, a shadow of loneliness would envelope her. Her father didn’t approve.
Her father, Tobe, (Kass had a start when she read that name) was an understanding father, willing to work out anything with her. Their relation was open, and neither of them hid anything from each other. Until she discovered David.
Kass, or Rachel, mooned about him for days after he moved from Seattle. She was never in love, never had a crush before, in all her 16 years, so this was entirely new to her. Kass closed herself off to everyone and everything, including Tobe, for days afterwards, talking when only asked a direct question. When David asked her to Spring Prom, Kass was ecstatic! Her dream was becoming reality! She spent hours on her hair, makeup, and her dress that she made herself. When finished, it was as if she were glowing.
It was the night of her life. Kass and David drifted through the dance floor as if they were floating on air. Neither of them had eyes for anyone but each other. It, however ended far too soon, and when everyone stepped outside to get to their cars, it was pouring. Kass started running for the car, but stopped when David put a hand on her shoulder. He turned her around, and pulled her close to him. They stared at each other for one, breathless moment, when he took the plunge.
When he pressed his lips on hers, a shock ran through her body, accelerating her heart beat until it pounded against her ribs, or his heart. His tongue ran lightly against her teeth, and she shivered at the light pressure. Standing there, in amongst the throngs of people, they were alone, together. Understanding, together, whole. When David finally pulled himself away from her, she shook her head, with a half smile playing on her lips. It was clear she wanted more. “I don’t want you to catch a cold” His deep, resonate voice murmured against her ear. They joined hands, and walked back to Kass’s dad’s black Mercedes. Kass couldn’t keep her eyes focussed on the road on the drive back home that night. Her eyes kept drifting back to the half of her heart that had always been missing. David. The name was crisp and sweet on her tongue. “David..” She started to ask him a question. He looked at her, love glistening in his eyes. “Did you–” CRASH! A jolt ran through her body, sending it thrown back in her seat, with her neck whiplashed forward. Beside her, David’s head hit the dashboard before the air bag went out. He didn’t move, he was unconscious. Kass was drifting that way as well, but she forced herself to stay awake long enough to stroke his head, and mouth, “I love you”

“No! No!” Kass gasped, pushing violently away from the computer. The brightly coloured walls of her room seemed to be closing in on her, as claustrophobia washed over her. Kass clattered down the stairs, ignoring the concerned questions from her dad, and went outside, grabbing a coat on the way out.

The wind was bitterly cold outside, soothing Kass’s tortured feelings. A dusting of snow had covered the ground, and more was coming in large, fat clumps. Kass tramped down the road for a few miles, when a gust of wind, colder than ever, blew over her again. She shook her head in surprise, than noticed where she was. Nowhere. Not in the outskirts of her town, in an endless white landscape, like an easel, yet to have a paintbrush touched to it’s surface yet. “Where am I?” She said, lips trembling. Not even her footsteps marked where she started, as snow drifted over them, hiding them better than if one were to erase it with an eraser.
Kass’s knees buckled, and she slowly collapsed to the ground. At least now, she knew a bit more about her life before the accident. But was that where she came from, in the pages of a story? Or did that story come from the pages of her life? Kass shivered, and laid down on the snow, not bothering to wipe off what snow settled on her. Time ceased to have meaning to her, hours could have passed, or days could have passed, Kass didn’t care.
When her father finally found her, her lips were mostly blue, and her skin had a greyish tinge to it. It was just a blurry memory to Kass, the feeling of being picked up, and put in the warm car, and being driven back into civilization. The first memory that made sense was one of Alice’s face leaning over Kass’s, and Alice calling for Tobe.
“Kass!” Dad cried when he came in, smoothing the hair back from her forehead. The world came into focus, and she remembered what had happened. Depression...the story...the cold....
“Dad?” Kass whispered, her voice rasping like sandpaper against the grain of the wood. Her throat was dry, and her tongue felt like a block of lead in her mouth.
“Oh Kass!” Dad whispered, sitting on her bed. Alice smiled softly, and left the room. “Kass, you gave me a scare. What were you doing so far out of town? Why were you only wearing a windbreaker? You know it’s too cold for that! How–”
“Dad, I’m fine. That’s what matters, right?” Kass rasped. “Can I have some water?” Dad immediately got up and went out the door. Kass could hear the heavy footsteps rushing down the stairs, then back up. He emerged in the doorway, and handed the glass to Kass. Kass’s hands, however, were numb, and couldn’t hold the glass, causing it to crash on the bed, soaking the bedsheets. “Sorry” Kass said apologetically. Dad shook his head, smiled, and got another glass, this time holding it for her. She sipped the first one, and coughed as it seared down her throat. The second and third drinks were better, feeling like ice water from the mountains. “Thank you.” She said, clearer this time, to her dad.
Dad smiled. “No problem. But there is one issue we need to discuss.”
Kass made a face. She didn’t want to confront the story yet. Dad correctly interpreted the look on her face, and said sympathetically, “The sooner it’s explained, the less it will hurt.” Kass nodded.
“Go ahead.” She said.
Dad ran his hands through his mouse brown hair. “Before Alice and I met, I was married again, to a woman named–”
“–Mellina?” Kass interrupted. Dad frowned.
“You shouldn’t know that name, and no, her name wasn’t Mellina. Her name was Elleen. She was amazingly beautiful. Her pale skin never had a freckle, or acne, or anything, and her eyes were green. Green as emeralds. Her hair was amazing. Long, and softly curling, black as twilight. But her looks didn’t matter. What matter was her heart.” Tobe tripped over the last word, as if his throat had closed and he forced it out. He took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and continued, although Kass was sure she caught a glimpse of a tear.
“Her heart, if measured in money, would be measured in, not dollars, but millions of dollars. Anyone on the street she found, she would take into the nearest coffee shop and buy them a hot drink and a donut. At least once a week, she would drop into the nursing home down the road, and visit people there. Each and every life she touched changed after she entered it. You would agree if you saw here” Dad gave a crooked half smile.
“The one thing that she wasn’t able to do was to be able to have a child.” His ears reddened at this point, a sure sign that he was embarrassed to say this part, but he continued on. “Her one dream, to hold a newborn baby of hers in her arms, wasn’t going to come true.
“We tried to adopt a child, but with a soldier on pension for a father and a budding author for a mother, we didn’t have much luck.
“Elleen was sad that she wasn’t going to have a child, but decided not to worry about it. She went around with her daily business as usual. That’s where the problem was, however. One of the people she took into Tim Hortens one day, was a bad drug addict, that attacked her for her money. She got shot, and her body was mutilated. They needed dental records to identify the body.
“I didn’t leave the house for two weeks after that. I was much like you were, after the crash. Mom came over, however.” Kass groaned. Tobe’s mother was well known for poking her nose into other people’s businesses.
“Yes, I know. Anyway, she came over, and said that I needed to get on with my life, and find someone else. I tried, but didn’t succeed until I met Alice, a month afterwards.
“Alice was amazing. Smart, funny, brave. She was, however, completely different from Elleen, which caused me to stay sane. If I started comparing Alice and Elleen, I never would have moved on. Just after we got married, I read a story in the news about a girl who claimed to have connections with other worlds. She claimed that if she wrote something, then the main object would come from the pages. I scoffed at this idea, but deep within myself, a resilient hope emerged, that maybe Elleen’s dream would come true. I contacted her via email, I’m sure you saw this.” Tobe looked at Kass, and Kass saw no point in fibbing, it was obvious she saw it, so she nodded.
“Anyway, she didn’t want to do it because she never brought something living into the world, and she was scared something would happen, and you’d be scarred for life. When I received the final copy of the story, Alice caught me printing it off, and wasn’t too happy that I didn’t clear it up with her first. It was too late, however. As soon as Mellina’s story was finished, you appeared in a blaze of light, broken and bruised, as if you had been in an accident. I took you straight to the hospital, and they fixed you up. I meant to delete that before you had the chance to see that, however. I’m sorry.” Tobe finished with a sigh. Kass didn’t say anything, for a moment. It had to sink in.
“Wow.” Kass finally said. “That’s...a lot.” So she wasn’t born a child? David was never real? It seemed so whimsical that that could happen. “So I’m...a storybook character?”
Tobe smiled. “I couldn’t love any story character or real human more.” He bent and swept Kass up in a hug. Kass open heartedly accepted it, and returned it with vigour, but the emptiness in her heart was swelling to unimaginable proportions. She didn’t belong in this world. She didn’t belong with this dad. Her David never existed. How could this happen?

Kass healed quickly, but her eyes seemed forever shadowed by something intangible. Dad and even Alice were worried about her. What was wrong with their child? Two weeks. That’s the time she acted this way. But it wasn’t like before, when she lacked the want or motivation to get out of bed and on with her life. This was like her soul had detached from her body, and she was moving, empty. Two weeks. That’s how long it took for Kass to disappear. They found her body, in amongst seaweed that had drifted in shore a few days after. A note was clenched in her hand, that was given to Tobe. Story characters don’t belong on Earth.